There are many meanings to hard work and I couldn’t just find one solid answer. Some people say hard work is good grades, going to top universities and getting a high paid job. Others may think hard work is doing the day-to-day activities or what you do on top of that.
However, for me, hard work means putting your all into a task, showing your true potential and doing something to the best of your ability. The outcome may not be the best or what you wanted but if you can show that you tried your best and were determined, then that’s hard work.
What I don’t like about the idea of defining hard work as getting good grades, going to university, getting a well paid job is; why is that one specific lifestyle deemed to be seen as a hard working one. I personally think hard work is more to do with your attitude towards things.
For example, getting good grades doesn’t always reflect hard work. Yes, most people do have to work hard to achieve good grades. However, someone who gets all C’s may have worked their socks off to get those C’s. Yet, someone else may be just academically gifted, they may not need to revise that much or aren’t as bothered and end up getting all A’s.
People work differently – You can’t expect someone to be able to exceed in an educational environment if it’s not for them. This does not mean you shouldn’t work hard! However, if someone works hard but still doesn’t get the grades to show it for example, you can’t just write them off as someone who isn’t hard working.
How can hard work affect your well-being?
Hard work can have both negative and positive effects on your well-being. You can burn out with how hard you are working but also feel guilty for taking time for yourself. However, it is always good to have some time away from work and relax as you are taking your well-being into consideration.
Yet, you can feel proud, happy and just overall feeling better about yourself for the outcomes of your hard work. There will be a sense of achievement and positive feedback from your hard work can boost your confidence and self-esteem.
How can risk taking benefit hard work?
Risk taking is something that means different for everyone. For me, risk taking is stepping outside of my comfort zone. For example, taking part in high risk activities like skydiving, cliff jumping, swimming with sharks etc.
However, it also means going with an idea without knowing for certain what the outcome will be. For example, whilst working on a school project, going off the brief a bit so that it will benefit the whole project without knowing how the teacher will react.
Risk taking and hard work can come hand in hand. You can put as much hard work in something but sometimes there will come a point where you won’t get anywhere if some risk taking doesn’t come into play.
This means you can grow as a person and it also pushes what you are focusing on onto the next steps. It allows you to overcome fear and the result will satisfy you. It will make you and what you are doing overall better.
Overall, hard work is not defined by one specific lifestyle and is different for everyone. For me, hard work is about your attitudes towards something and there are many ways to work hard but still have that work-life balance.